76ers vs. Celtics: The Impossible Shot and The Ecstatic Steal

The 1965 NBA Eastern Division Finals delivered two of the greatest plays in history

I’ve been following the 1965 NBA Eastern Division Finals, precisely 60 years ago, between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Boston Celtics for several reasons:

• First, it was one of the classic match ups between Wilt Chamberlain and Bill Russell when they were both in their prime;

• Second, it was a drama filled series that went 7 games and came down to the final play in the deciding contest;

• Third, and most of all, because I knew the series ended on the most dramatic and celebrated steal in basketball history, one that was magnificently captured in a moment of pure ecstasy on the radio, with the tape forever to be replayed as one of the all-time classic sports calls.

The wild, excited screaming of the play-by-play announcer, Johnny Most, has led me to call the it, “The Ecstatic Steal.”

What I didn’t expect in following this series was that the final play in the final game was not even the greatest moment of the series in my view.

I “discovered” one of the great hidden gems in NBA history in game 4. I use the word “discovered” because it’s a play that almost no one knows about as no radio call or TV video tape has survived to the present. It’s a play that should rightfully be talked about as one of the most spectacular ever made. It’s what was referred to the day after the game as “The Impossible Shot.”

This is the story of these two plays - The Impossible Shot and The Ecstatic Steal. Two plays that were so incredible they seem as though they were scripted in Hollywood. They’re the kind of plays that make you love sports history.

Now join me as I take you back in time to experience The Impossible Shot and The Ecstatic Steal.

The Impossible Shot

Philadelphia Convention Hall - April 10, 1965

Yesterday I experienced the greatest shot in basketball history that almost no one knows about. Lee Linder of the Associated Press called it the “Impossible Shot” in his story that ran across the country.

Jack Kiser, covering the game for the Philadelphia Daily News, also used the word “impossible” in his headline.

Will McDonough of the Boston Globe didn’t put the word “impossible” in his headline, but he did use it in his write up. He called it “near impossible.”

Here’s what happened.

It was game 4 of the Eastern Division Finals between the Celtics and the 76ers. The 76ers came into the game down 2 - 1 in the series. A loss would put them in playoff purgatory. Up to this time, no team had ever come back once they were down 3 games to 1.

The Celtics led by 4 with 42 seconds to go at 118 - 114. The hometown crowd in Philadelphia sensed it was desperation time. McDonough wrote, “Everyone in a jampacked Convention Hall had given up hope.” Then the 76ers Luke Jackson hit a jump shot with 34 seconds left and pulled Philly within 2.

Now the Celtics tried to run out the clock, although they didn’t have quite enough time to do it. The Celtics’ Sam Jones put up a shot from the side with seconds to play and missed. Wilt Chamberlain grabbed the rebound and coach Dolph Schayes yelled for time.

The 76ers got the timeout. But there was just 1 second remaining.

The Plan

Dolph Schayes had 1 minute to talk to the team. Cliff Keane of the Boston Globe wrote, “If there is excitement at a crap game, it is quiet (compared) to what was going on around the 76ers bench with Dolph Schayes talking things over with his five men who were going to take this last ditch shot at the basket.”

The 76ers would be inbounding the ball at half court.

Schayes described the play he designed to Keane, “I told my men to line up four across the court just inside the offensive zone (the half court line) … I told these guys to break in different directions, all but Greer. I wanted him to stay put. I figured he’d be clear enough for this one desperate shot.”

Schayes was referring to Hal Greer, the 28 year old, 6’2” guard, who was the best shooter on the club, and a 5 time all-star through the 1965 season.

Hal Greer described the huddle talk slightly differently in his conversation with Jack Kiser, “It was a play set up by Dolph… We set up a three man screen and I was to go behind it, take the pass and fire.

Then Greer mentioned something fascinating and very instructive for students of the game.

“I knew I wouldn’t have time to look at the basket after I got the ball, so I studied it hard before, putting the picture of it deep in my mind.”

The Play

Larry Jones was tasked with throwing the inbound pass. As the officials whistle blew to start play, Chamberlain, Chet Walker and Luke Jackson all broke in different directions. Greer was alone at mid-court.

Greer told Keane in the Boston Globe, “I felt I had one chance and that was to fire the ball at the backboards and hope it would bounce off and into the basket. I felt I had a better chance that way, since I didn’t have time to take dead aim at the rim.

The Shot

Will McDonough wrote, “Las Vegas wouldn’t have even put his odds on the books, but Hal didn’t seem to mind. He went up for his patented jump shot with a blank expression on his face. The ball went up - straight down the middle - bounced off the backboard - and into the basket.”

Greer told Jack Kiser, “I just let this thing go, and it hit the rim and went in.”

Bill Higdon of the Cumberland Country Evening News in New Jersey wrote about the shot, “Swish! Bedlam broke loose among the 9,293 paying patrons, as the game swayed into overtime.”

Hal Greer had made the shot from at least 35 feet out according to various reports.

Keane in the Boston Globe wrote, “Greer had done the near impossible and Philly had a new life.”

Buoyed by Greer’s impossible shot, the 76ers scored 6 straight points early in the OT and went on to win it and even the series at 2 games apiece.

NOTE from the Present

I interrupt this article to ponder Hal Greer’s “Impossible Shot.”

It is a terrible shame that there is no publicly available videotape of Hal Greer’s “Impossible Shot.”

If anyone knows of a tape PLEASE SHARE IT in the comments box at the bottom of this article, or email me directly at Len@fermaninnovation.com.

There is reason to believe that someone might have access to a tape. After the game articles in the Boston newspapers suggested that Greer couldn’t have gotten the shot off before time expired. Although Bob Cousy, the retired Hall of Fame Celtics’ star, who was at the game as a TV announcer for ABC said, “No question about it; it was a good shot,” in a special to the Philadelphia Inquirer 3 days after the game.

That same day, the Philadelphia Inquirer ran an article that included this paragraph, “Most of Boston’s Sunday papers carried a videotape sequence of the shot.”

Unfortunately, whichever those “Boston Sunday papers” were, they’re not available in the newspaper archives today.

Bob Cousy also alluded to a video tape. In the Philadelphia Inquirer article Cousy states, “I’ve watched it three times.”

If there was a videotape available today, the “Impossible Shot” would likely make every list ever published of the top 10 shots in NBA playoff history. But without that tape, sports history has treated Hal Greer’s Impossible Shot as though it never happened.

But it did happen. And Greer’s shot gave Philly new life in the series which continued on to a 7th game at the old Boston Garden on April 15, 1965.

And this is where the 2nd part of our story begins.

Now I take you back again to 1965 for the conclusion of game 7.

The Ecstatic Steal

Boston Garden - April 16, 1965

Last night at 10:07pm ET in Boston Garden was one of the great moments in basketball history.

The Celtics were clinging to a 110 - 109 lead with 4 seconds remaining in the decisive game 7 of the NBA Eastern Division Finals.

Minutes earlier the Celtics appeared golden, leading 110 - 103. But Philly had clawed back, and a Wilt Chamberlain dunk had pulled the 76ers were within a single point.

Now, Bill Russell was inbounding the ball under his own basket. The Celtics just had to get the ball in and try to run out the clock to win the game and go to the NBA Finals.

Will McDonough in the Boston Globe described what happened next, “Russell’s attempted pass hit a wire that supports the basket and Philly had the ball.”

It was a colossal mistake by the normally flawless Russell.

Now Philadelphia had the ball under their own basket with 4 seconds left. A basket would win the game, and the series, and send the 76ers to the Finals. A basket would also break Boston’s streak of 6 consecutive NBA Titles.

76ers’ coach, Dolph Schayes, called timeout. The brilliant Schayes, who was the NBA’s all-time leading scorer until last season, had time to draw up another game saving play, just as he had done the week before.

Once again, Schayes designed the play for Hal Greer to take the final shot. Gordon Forbes wrote in the Philadelphia Inquirer today, “The play was for Greer to throw the in-bounds pass to Chet Walker, while Johnny Kerr set up the screen for the jumper.”

You can watch what happened next in this video:

The inbound pass from Greer to Walker was intercepted. John Havlicek stole the ball in what has become celebrated as one of the greatest plays in NBA history… thanks to the video and the ecstatic radio call of Boston announcer Johnny Most. Havlicek tipped the ball to teammate Sam Jones who dribbled out the clock. The Celtics escaped with a 1 point victory and a berth in the NBA Finals.

The Boston Garden erupted in the wildest scene of pandemonium ever witnessed on the parquet floor.

Havlicek described the historic play to Cliff Keane in today’s Boston Globe, “The man who had the ball out of bounds was Hal Greer. I was guarding Chet Walker. Now I know that Chet isn’t going to cut towards the basket. There are three of their men behind me, so I know there’s no place to go.

“I sensed that there were three seconds elapsed and the ball hadn’t come in. Now I figure I can take a peek back at what’s going on. At the same time I can watch Walker out of the corner of my eye. I had both the man passing in and Walker pretty much in sight…”

Greer throws the ball in. My hands were in the air. I flicked at it with my right hand towards Sam Jones.”

Once Jones had the ball the game was effectively over as he dribbled out the clock.

John Havlicek had saved the game, the series, and the whole season for the Celtics.

Philadelphia Daily News’ Jack Kiser was in the 76ers’ dressing room after the game and interviewed a despondent Dolph Schayes. Kiser wrote, “His eyes filled with deep hurt. Only minutes before he was young and vibrant, cheering and giving his team that famed 'charge’ gesture of his. But now he was an old man who had just been hit with a knockout punch he didn’t see coming.”

Schayes told Kiser, “It was a simple play. Hal was to throw the ball into Chet. Johnny Kerr was to screen off Hal’s man and Hal was to step in behind the screen, take the pass from Chet and…”

Kiser then wrote, “Here the 76ers coach’s voice faded away to nothingness as he made a shooting gesture and watched the shot that never came go into an imaginary basket.”

Schayes then finished with this, “I thought we had them, but we didn’t.”

FINAL NOTE from the Present

“Havlicek Stole the Ball” is one of the classic lines in basketball history. The play is featured in most lists of all-time greatest plays. And it’s all because of the video tape combined with the iconic radio call of Johnny Most. In Boston, a LP record album was made of the radio call in 1965. And it has been celebrated ever since. I never get tired of hearing the suddenly high pitched voice shouting, “And Havlicek steals it! Over to Sam Jones! Havlicek stole the ball! It’s all over! It’s all over. Johnny Havlicek is being mobbed by the fans. It’s all over. Johnny Havlicek stole the ball!”

And I’m not even a Celtics fan.

Up Close with John Havlicek

13 years after the famous steal, I had an opportunity to watch John Havlicek play in one of the last games of his career on national TV. It was Sunday, February 26, 1978. The Celtics were playing the New Jersey Nets. The game was being broadcast on CBS. I never caught the game on TV because I was actually at the game and sitting in the first row with my dad.

Below is a picture from the tape of the TV broadcast of me at the game.

That’s me at the top left in the green striped shirt with white collar. The silver haired man in the sports coat is Nets coach Kevin Loughery.

Now take a look at this picture later in the game. You can see me in the middle in my green striped shirt, white collared shirt. And walking on the court, just a little in front of me, is the great “Hondo” - John Havlicek.

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